Canada Focus

Three men are newsworthy and prayer-worthy today, April 15th: Svend Robinson, Nicky Gumbel and the reincarnated 'Ocean of Wisdom'. At 7:45 am Nicky Gumbel addressed 1200 people in Broadway Church, Vancouver, and asked the question: Can Canada be transformed?. Answer: Yes! At 8:00 am it was rumoured that the Burnaby MP Svend Robinson was going to announce his resignation which then happened at 11:00 am in a tearful press conference. Later today, or possibly tomorrow the D.... L... will arrive in Vancouver for the first stage of a three week visit to Canada. Many people have asked me how should they pray about Bill C-250, the visit of the DL and other issues in Canada...so here goes:

GOD IS USING NICKY GUMBEL TO TRANSFORM CANADA

FACT: 650,000 Canadians have been on an Alpha course and 130,000 have given their lives to Christ!

Nicky Gumbel received a huge welcome from about 1200 people in Vancouver at a breakfast meeting today. This Anglican lawyer, turned clergyman, and the pioneer of the ALPHA course, said it was important to ask the right questions. The important question was: 'Can a nation be changed? Can Canada be transformed?' He shared from Luke 5:1-11 where a huge catch of fish was taken up in nets that nearly broke after Jesus spoke a word, and said it was a visual aid for how a nation can be transformed. Basically nothing is impossible for Jesus and we should expect many to come to Christ as we share the Gospel. Since two notorious criminals came to Christ in 1994, 138 out of 160 UK prisons now have thriving Alpha groups. We also had to be prepared for change as God did wonderful things. Alpha in Canada is still growing and there could be 3000 Alpha groups across our nation this year. This was an incredibly encouraging time.

And so we pray: that Alpha and many other evangelistic initiatives will bear much fruit and that millions will turn to Christ and be sincere disciples. That's transformation!

GOD LOVES SVEND ROBINSON

At 11:00 am PT this popular but radical MP announced a sudden leave from federal politics. In a tearful press conference he confessed he was totally stressed out and had unimaginably stolen jewellery (allegedly worth $50k) from an auction last Friday. Many have previously pleaded with the Lord in prayer to either transform this man or remove him. He is a very good constituency MP but his radical ideas have challenged God's name in our Charter and the moral teaching of scripture. His bill C-250 is seen as a danger to religious freedom in this country. So he is stepping down, but I feel this is not a time for gloating. We are all objects of God's mercy and who could stand if we were publicly judged. A few months ago at a vigil outside his office I had the privilege of praying for Svend Robinson with him standing next to me. I prayed for his salvation following the example of Phyllis Trafford, his English teacher of 40 years ago. She recently died having faithfully prayed for him for decades. It is not unusual for highly intelligent but highly stressed people to shop lift, it is often a cry for help. Svend is burnt out and his human condition demands our prayers and our sympathy. When people come to an end of themselves it is an opportunity for them to find God in a new way. In Psalm 83 scripture reveals that disgrace, shame and failure are tools in the hand of God to cause powerful people to recognize the sovereignty and power of the living God:

14 As a fire roars through a forest and as a flame sets mountains ablaze, 15 chase them with your fierce storms; terrify them with your tempests. 16 Utterly disgrace them until they submit to your name, O LORD. 17 Let them be ashamed and terrified forever. Make them failures in everything they do, 18 until they learn that you alone are called the LORD, that you alone are the Most High, supreme over all the earth. (NLT)

Perhaps Svend is under the chastising but merciful hand of God to bring him to repentance. Pray that the possible public sympathy will not be a soulish remedy to inhibit the deeper work.

So we pray: Father we ask you to draw near to Svend Robinson and his friends at this difficult time and cause them to know you personally that they would turn and know the power of God in their lives. Please transform this man and make him a great witness for Jesus Christ. Remove him from Parliament until he knows that you have dominion over Canada. Heal him in every way and cause righteousness to prevail in the investigation. Nothing is impossible with you as you work mightily across the nation. We yield the future of Bill C-250 to you knowing that all things and all Senators are in your hands, turn their hearts to you O Lord. In the mighty name of Jesus .... Amen.

PRAYER FOR THE DL

As Nicky Gumbel said... 'Nothing is impossible with Jesus'. Let us pray for the conversion of the DL, that in his meditation times in Canada he will have a personal revelation of Jesus Christ. The powers of darkness have to give way to the Kingdom of God, so we pray that the false gospel will have no power of deception in Canada and that he will have no resting place here. Our prayer strategy is largely worship to Jesus, exalting him as Lord over our cities and nation. Please Pray for Vancouver, Ottawa and Toronto especially.

Proclaim Isaiah 34: 8-12 to declare that the Kal...a event will not take place and that for the DL - 'there will be no kingdom there'!
Also declare that for the 722 spirit princes they will be nothing!

Pray for the salvation of the DL and for the initiates to have a revelation of the real Time Lord - Jesus Christ.

For the salvation of Tibetan Buddhist people in North America.

For the unity and protection of all those involved in prayer in our cities.

For our own repentance according to 2 Chron 7:14.

Consider joining in with one of the prayer and fasting initiatives.

Vancouver (April 17 - 20)

Strategic prayer and worship will have the focus on the Lord Jesus. On Monday, April 19th, a worship service is planned in the city to lift high the name of Jesus during the time when the DL is at the Orpheum Theatre. Peace Choirs across the country will be coordinating their simultaneous praises for the DL, so other cities are invited to worship Jesus at that time! Vancouver has proclaimed a 21 day partial (Daniel) fast from April 1-21.

April 20 - Ceremony at the Cathedral and reception of Honorary Law Degree 9:00 am
Interfaith Roundtable Dialogue at UBC at 12:30 pm. Chaired by Bishop Michael Ingham

Ottawa (April 21 - 24)

The 'Stand in the Gap' prayer team have planned prayer walks, prayer and fasting days, and open houses of prayer. Pray that government will not be seduced with deceptive words, especially the Prime Minister.

It is also possible that Chief Phil Fontaine may welcome the DL on behalf of the Assembly of First Nations.

The local team in Toronto have formulated a response with three primary streams, under the title "The House of the King". Please check out the website for many details at www.houseoftheking.com.

24/12 Worship: Starting a day earlier than the other ceremony, there will be a continuous stream of worship ascending from a central location in Toronto, which will use local and visiting worship teams.

Intercessory Prayer will be deployed out of the worship environment, using different types of intercessory prayer, both on location and out in the streets. Training is ongoing, and there will also be an orientation session at the start of the effort and at different times during the 12 days for those arriving from other parts of the nation and the globe.

Outreach Ministry is also being developed to reach out in love to the many followers of the DL who will be visiting the city at that time. Training sessions will be happening before and during the event.

Intercessors for Canada

Intercessors for Canada is a group of Canadian Christian leaders and intercessors who seek God to hear what He is saying to our nation. It is our prayer that through the ministry of IFC you will be strengthened in your prayer life, and that a Spirit of Prayer will come upon you for Canada.